Dear North Tawton Parents and Families,
Another week has come to an end, and as to date (Saturday afternoon) there are no more staff or pupil Covid cases. We do need to proceed with caution, as I have said in my emails this week, and maintain vigilance to reduce the likelihood of spread. Please continue to wear masks at drop off and pick up. We will not have whole school assemblies this week but will keep reviewing our situation. Emailed to all families 30th September 2021
Dear North Tawton Families I am writing to inform you that we now have four confirmed cases of Covid19 in our school. The cases are in Y1 and Year 3, we also have a child from year 2 who has tested positive on more than one LFT , but not on PCR tests. The pupils and staff are isolating and, thankfully, none are seriously ill. Earlier today, I rang the DFE help line to report this number and have been advised to continue our safety measures to reduce possible spread. They have sent me a 'Warn and Inform' letter which I have attached to this email. I realise that this is a worrying time for you and your families and would like to reiterate that we are following our risk assessment closely and doing everything we can to ensure good hygiene and ventilation in school. Looking at clubs today and tomorrow, we only have 8 children for Choir, so they can be distanced safely inside and Netball and Saints Sports can go ahead as they are outside, we will review clubs for next week and be in touch. Our risk assessment and contingency plan can be found on our website. Please be assured that I will keep you fully updated on the situation moving forward, With best wishes, Tara Penny Dear North Tawton Families,
Farewells and Welcomes This week we sadly said goodbye to Mrs Adams and to Rev Weldon. We wish them both the very best in their careers ahead and hope they take many happy memories of the school with them. We have welcomed Mrs Aston who has been working alongside Mrs Adams this week to learn all about our office systems. We also welcome Mr Cutler who we already know well, he will step in until we have a new Reverend at the church. Communication If you have a message for a member of staff, please email [email protected] and Mrs Aston or Mrs Cassels will make sure this is passed on. Staff do not monitor Dojo when they are teaching, so important messages can be missed. It’s easy and free to use your library! You can borrow books, take part in activities and use our computers or Wi-Fi.
It's free to become a member of the library, either join online or by visiting staff in the library.
We have a range of free resources that all library members can access online:
Book Amnesty 8 September – 8 October Got an overdue book on your conscience? 📚 Couldn't face returning that DVD after losing it down the back of the sofa three years ago? Return your horribly overdue items to your library during our Book Amnesty, and your fine will be waived, no questions asked Saturday 2nd October ~ Okehampton Fun Palace 09:30-12:00 Fun Palaces is a national campaign to put culture in the heart of local communities. It is an annual weekend of action - arts, science, craft, tech, digital, heritage and sports. We are offering a creative community morning of free taster activities. If you would like to take part, sharing a skill or learning a new one, please contact Okehampton Library. Current activities include ukulele and patchwork. For more info about Fun Palaces visit their website. funpalaces.co.uk Tuesday 5 October ~ Celebrating 'Libraries Week' 08:00-10:00 ~ A cuppa and a croissant. Pop in before school for a book. 18:00-20:00 ~ Late Night Library Opening, with light refreshments. View our local history collections, including the Wardhayes picture collection, which is located throughout the library building. All our usual library services will be available, and staff will be on hand to tell you about all our digital services. Half Term Event, 25th - 30th October - TBC, please check our Facebook page or website for details: www.devonlibraries.org.uk/okehamptonlibrary READING WELL Collection for children - Books to help you feel better A collection of books free to borrow from Okehampton Library. Reading Well for children recommends reading to help you deal with worries, feel better and boost your mood. The books have been chosen by children, carers, health experts and librarians. Devon Libraries is part of Libraries Unlimited Libraries Unlimited is a registered charity. Every penny raised goes directly towards library services that help make a difference to people’s lives and communities. To donate, please visit librariesunlimited.org.uk Regular events Adults Every Tuesday 13:30-14:30– Knit & Natter Bring along your knitting, stitching, crochet or other portable project, for a chat with like-minded crafters. Tea and coffee available at 50p a cup. Knit and Natter takes place in the children’s area of the library. A small selection of baby toys will be available during these sessions. Children and Young People Tuesdays 10:00-10:20 & 11:00-11:20 - Bounce & Rhyme For under 5s and their carers Free – booking in advance essential Wednesdays 09:30–10:15 - Duplo Builders & Storytime for ages 0-5 Free - no booking necessary Saturdays 10:30–11:30 Lego Builders for ages 5+ Free - no booking necessary Book Track for ages 6+ during library opening hours Free, ask staff for further details Children under 8 must be accompanied to all events by a responsible adult Please see our library website or Facebook page for any additional events and library services www.devonlibraries.org.uk Opening Hours Monday 09:00-17:00 Tuesday 09:00-18:00 Wednesday 09:00-13:00 Thursday 09:00-17:00 Friday 09:00-18:00 Saturday 09:00-13:00 FONTS AGM (Annual General Meeting)
Tuesday 5th October Straight after school pick up – in the hall Everyone is welcome, children can come too (with something to occupy them if poss J) Please come to the AGM and support FONTS, we are facing closure without people to carry on the good work. We need to come back together after the last couple of disrupted years. Our school needs FONTS!! We are all busy, but this is our school, and the events held and the money raised by FONTS helps make our children’s experience all the better. The main committee roles are Chair, Treasurer and Secretary. In order for FONTS to continue there has to be people in these roles. However these are not the only roles, Class Reps for each class would be great too. Also, just knowing that the committee have people willing to help out is great. Please talk to Julie Steward (Chair / Treasurer) Philippa Sims (Secretary) about the roles, or send FONTS a message. Thank you FONTS Committee Email [email protected]/ message FONTS on ClassDojo Dear North Tawton Families,
It has been an absolute joy to see the children back in school. They have made a fantastic start to the new school year. Across the school I have seen lots of learning and laughter in classes and at playtimes it has been wonderful to see children of different classes playing together again. Thank you for all of your support with our new morning and after school routines. Dear North Tawton Families,
I hope you have all had a good holiday and are ready for the new school year! A special welcome to our new families we look forward to getting to know you! Building Update The Nursery and Reception building work has started but unfortunately the project is not completed due to the national lack of availability of building materials. The new extension for outdoor learning and the side entrance will be built later this term. In the meantime, we will be using the old Nursery and Reception space for safe outdoor learning and play. We are looking forward to the arrival of lots of new resources thanks to Friends of North Tawton fundraising. Year One and Year Two have newly decorated rooms to move in to, and Year Three have a break out space as we now have a partition dividing that long room (the original hall) Year Four, Five and Six are also in new classrooms this year, so as you can imagine we are busy moving furniture and resources across the school buildings so everything is ready for the children on Wednesday. Staffing Update I am sad to let you know that Debbie Stoneman, one of our brilliant teaching assistants, will be leaving at the end of the week. Those of you who have had children in her groups and classes will agree she is an excellent educator; calm, patient and incredibly knowledgeable. We wish her all the very best in her future endeavors. Also, our administrator Lyndsay Adams will be leaving in three weeks’ time. She has a new job which is a wonderful career move for her, but obviously will be a great loss for us. We are very sad to say farewell to both of these staff. I am in the process of recruitment for both posts and will let you know as soon as we have new staff in place. In the meantime, Danielle Day will move up with Reception in to Year 1 and Verity Heffier from Year 1 to Year 2. Lyndsay will be with us until 23rd September, I aim to have recruited before then for a handover of all her knowledge and skills. Curriculum Update We are introducing a new curriculum in Early Years and in Key Stage 1 and 2. The staff have been busy looking at the new resources and planning for the children. We are still teaching the same subjects, just in a different way. Our INSET days and staff meeting times will be devoted to working together with our other DMAT schools to make our curriculum exciting, challenging and progressive across the year groups. We (and the children!) will tell you more about this as we introduce this. New Uniform If you have ordered new uniform, please ring the school office on Monday afternoon to arrange collection. Covid While Covid 19 is still a concern, we are now able to make some changes which will make school life more ‘normal.’ We are able to have children together for play times and assemblies (with ventilated rooms and sensible distance) We will continue to have hand hygiene as a priority and make sure we are all following the ‘Catch it, Kill it, Bin it’ regime. Staff will continue to test twice weekly and we will wear masks when in close proximity with others. If staff or children have symptoms, we send them home for testing. People are still being infected, but with sensible hand washing and sanitizing, vaccines available for staff and testing we should prevent spread. There is more detail on the school website in our current risk assessment and contingency plan. Arrival and Collection On Wednesday, please be patient as we welcome in new children and families. Parents please walk with Nursery and Reception children to the entrance of the building on the left of the carpark (where year 5 and 6 were last year) Parents can walk Year One and Year Two children to the entrance on the right of the playground by the ramp. (where Nursery and Reception were last year) Key stage two children (Year 3,4, 5 &6) will walk up past Year 1 and Year 2 to the infant playground where they can walk in to classes with their class mates. There will be plenty of staff around to help direct children. If you have more than one child, please drop off older children first. At the end of the day, Year 6 children can go home unaccompanied only if we have written consent from a carer or parent. Parents to collect Year 3, 4, 5 & 6 from the infant playground where they will be with their teachers, Year 1 and 2 from the area by the ramp outside their rooms and Nursery and Reception from the main entrance to their building. (Nursery will have their own entrance when the work is finished) Please collect KS2 children first as they will be waiting outside. Children who go home by bus or taxi will be collected by a member of staff and will wait together in the shelter in the playground until the bus and taxi arrive when the will be walked down by a member of staff. If you need to collect or drop off a child at a different time, please ring the office staff and we will arrange to meet them at the gate. We ask parents to please wear masks at drop off and collection, and no parents to enter the buildings. We will keep reviewing our plans and let you know of any changes. As far as possible, please call or email any questions or messages to our office staff, they will make sure important messages are passed on tot he relevant staff. The office email is [email protected] If you need to go to the office, please enter one at a time so the area is not congested. On behalf of all the staff, we look forward to seeing all of the children on Wednesday and starting an exciting new year. All the best Tara Penny Principal Dear North Tawton Families and Friends, Miss Chauhan and I both thank you all for your support over this year. What a year it has been! Another two lock downs, remote learning, critical worker groups, restrictions, cancelled events and a change of school leadership. The staff have been amazing in dealing with all of the changes, making each day as exciting as possible, finding new ways to teach and organise classrooms and resources so the children enjoy their learning and make progress. We are so very grateful to all the parents and local community members who have supported us both and the school during this challenging year. Thank you! Farewell Year Six
Yesterday was an emotional day as we said goodbye to our Year Sixes. They had a good send off with a Graduation Ball, lots of special assemblies, a forest day, water fight, an award ceremony, and a wall of applause from the staff as they left the school. We wish them all the very best as they go on to their secondary schools. Mrs Ware gave a final piece of excellent advice just before they left ‘don’t try to be cool, the coolest people are the ones who are themselves and don’t follow the crowd trying to be cool.’ Class Leaning Do see our class blogs for weekly updates of class learning and news.
FONTS Update Phew! A scorching end to the school year! And its been a busy one! Covid restrictions, meant we took fundraising online and ran our first Virtual Christmas Market and two Virtual Balloon Races. But it wasn’t all virtual, with 100 Club, a Fancy Dress Competition, a Bauble Trail, a Wreath Competition, Bag2School collections and another fantastic Christmas card order with the childrens’ brilliant art work. Wet Play boxes were refilled in every class early in the year, and FONTS treated the children to an online Pantomime, and gave all the staff at the school a huge hamper of Christmas treats and gifts on behalf of all the school families. We’re really looking forward to the new school year (not wishing the holidays away!) and being able to get the school community back together again. You don’t have to be on the FONTS committee to raise funds for the school, just let us know your plans… Would you like to be the Chair, Treasurer or a Class Rep? without these roles FONTS can’t continue and a valuable source of support for the school will be lost – if you would like to know more, please contact FONTS (as below) or message Julie Steward. 2021 / 2022 100 Club – numbers are selling quickly, so don’t forget to let FONTS know on facebook or Dojo if you’d like a number / numbers in the draws. There’s more info on the FONTS page of the school website. Wishing you a lovely summer break, see you soon, FONTS Committee Email [email protected]/ message FONTS on ClassDojo (emails / messages will be picked up during the holidays) Our Runners A reminder for our runners and their supporters; please meet this Sunday at Simmonds Park at the OCRA pavilion. 9am to register for a 9.30am start. Good luck to you all. I hope the weather is kind! Staff News Today staff are here for a day of phonics training, we will be in school on Monday 6th and Tuesday 7th September for training, planning and preparation for the year ahead. Teachers will be spending time over the summer holiday looking at new resources and planning for the year ahead. Please don’t be fooled into thinking this is a 9 – 4 term time only job as the media often portrays! School staff work above and beyond their hours, either staying behind in classes or the office to finish work we just can't get to in our 'official' hours, setting up and running clubs and school events, or doing extra work at home. For this I am very grateful although never expectant. Olympics and Paralympics On Monday I talked to the children about the upcoming Olympic and Paralympic Games. Do get involved in this spectacular sporting event by following the news, watching the highlights and keeping track of our medals! The Olympic opening ceremony is in Tokyo today and events will be televised until 8th August. I am particularly looking forward to the gymnastics, track and field events. https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/all-sports/olympic-schedule.htm The Paralympic are 24th August – 5th September https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/en/paralympics/ Team GB is strong and I am hoping we will equal and better our previous medals. Go Team GB! Uniform I would like to remind families of the uniform policy. Children can wear: a white or green polo shirt, a green sweatshirt or cardigan with school logo, with grey or black trousers, or grey or black shorts. A grey skirt or pinafore dress or green and white check dress. Grey or white socks or tights with black shoes. Black, low-heeled boots may also be worn in Winter/adverse weather conditions. https://www.ntcps.co.uk/parent-information-hub.html Jewellery is not permitted. I will be reminding children and families of these expectations in the new school year. Breakfast Club and After School Club I have been in talks with a company who run breakfast and afterschool clubs in many schools across the country. I was hoping they would start in September, but it looks like there will be a delay. I am still in conversation with them and will let you know as soon as possible. School Building Update We have lots of building work and decoration happening this summer and in the October half term. Staff have been brilliant moving furniture and clearing spaces for the work to be done. Extra day off We have an extra day off next year – Monday 6th June! Please add this to your new calendars and diaries! Covid 19 Update I really do hope you all enjoy the summer holiday, please do be careful and look after yourselves, particularly as restrictions have been lifted recording Covid. The government recommends the following:
People are still urged to get vaccinated and to self-isolate and get tested if they have symptoms. It will remain a legal requirement for people to self-isolate if they test positive or are told to do so by NHS Test and Trace. They also want everyone to continue to download and use the latest version of the NHS COVID-19 app to help reduce the spread of the virus. You may choose to limit the close contact you have with those you do not usually live with in order to reduce the risk of catching or spreading COVID-19, particularly if you are clinically extremely vulnerable. It is important to respect and be considerate of those who may wish to take a more cautious approach as restrictions are lifted. With very best wishes for a wonderful summer holiday, I look forward to seeing all of the children on Wednesday 8th September, Tara Penny Dear North Tawton Families and Friends,
As always, it's been another busy week here at North Tawton! The good weather really did help to lift our spirits after our disappointment in not winning the football. Well done to our England team for coming second - that's an achievement to celebrate, and for their professionalism in the face of awful prejudice this week, what great role models they have been. Roll on the Olympics! I will be talking to the children about this on Monday. On Wednesday, Year Six had an amazing day of den building, climbing a ropes course, and making a fire to toast marshmallows. A big thank you to Miss Prince, our resident Forest School teacher for working with Mrs Ware to organise this. After school, the staff enjoyed the ropes course and toasting some marshmallows on the fire before we put it all safely away! Do see our class blogs to see what else the children have been up to this week. Last week, I was invited to the Annual North Tawton School Lands Trust meeting. The Trust kindly gave the school £500 to support financing exciting classroom activities and special events. I shall be attending next year to show them how well the money was spent. Staffing We are sad to be saying goodbye to Mrs King and Mrs Matthews next week. We know we will be seeing them in our school community, so it is not a farewell. We are delighted to welcome Mrs Tingle and Mrs Ahmad to the staff team. Mrs Tingle will join the Nursery team and Mrs Ahmad our Year Two team. The children have met their new class teachers this week and know which rooms they will be in come September. FONTS – UPDATE – 16 July 2021 Would you like to be the Chair, Treasurer or a Class Rep? Without these roles FONTS can’t continue and a valuable source of support for the school will be lost – if you would like to know more, please contact FONTS (as below) or message Julie Steward. Saturday 17 July 2021 - Virtual Balloon Race – Launching tomorrow!! FONTS have a prize fund of 10% of balloon money for the balloon that travels furthest…so don’t forget to buy your balloons. The money raised will be used for music and sports equipment at the school. See FONTS Facebook pages and Dojo for details. 2021 / 2022 100 Club – numbers are selling quickly, so don’t forget to let FONTS know on Facebook or Dojo if you’d like to a number / numbers in the draws. There’s more info on the FONTS page of the school website. Thank you for your continued support, FONTS Committee Email [email protected]/ message FONTS on ClassDojo Covid 19 Update Although restrictions will be lifted next week, we are continuing our systems here for the next four days which will bring us to the end of term. The government recommends the following:
You may choose to limit the close contact you have with those you do not usually live with in order to reduce the risk of catching or spreading COVID-19, particularly if you are clinically extremely vulnerable. It is important to respect and be considerate of those who may wish to take a more cautious approach as restrictions are lifted. Reports Today, parents have received children’s end of year reports. Please share these with your children. In the reports we communicate what your child has learnt this year, and targets for next year. Please do celebrate your children’s successes. I have read every report and there is not a child in the school who should not feel proud of the achievements they have made this year. I always look at the effort score first. As long as children are trying their best, I am happy! Where children have not made as much progress as we had hoped, additional support will continue to be put in place. Over the summer we urge you to encourage reading, writing and maths games so that when the children come back in September they are ready to pick up where they left off. I hope you have a lovely weekend. Don't forget sun safety - it's going to be hot! I look forward to seeing you all on Monday for our last week of the year. With very best wishes Tara Penny Dear North Tawton Families and Friends,
I would like to urge parents to step forward to continue the great work of our Friends of North Tawton group ‘FONTS’. The school really does rely on the support of FONTS for event planning and for the amazing fundraising they do. With school budgets stretched to the limit, fundraising and grants are the sources for us to pay for additional enriching resources, subsidise trip costs and host special events. In September we will relaunch the group with hopefully some face to face meetings and a welcome event. We need parents to step up and run this, it does take some time and commitment, but is an enormously rewarding and extremely appreciated role. If you would like to know more, please speak to Julie or Philippa or email Friends of North Tawton [email protected] |
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